CBS and Gameloft Use Real Phone Calls to Unravel Clues and Solve Crimes in CSI Crime Scene Investigation - The Mobile Game"

CBS and Gameloft Use Real Phone Calls to Unravel Clues and Solve Crimes in "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation — The Mobile Game"

Mobile Characters Based on the Popular TV Series Call Players and Provide Investigative Tips for Sin City Murder Case

Gameloft, a leading international publisher and developer of mobile games, today announced the U.S. release of “CSI:Crime Scene Investigation — The Mobile Game,” based on the CBS primetime hit television series. The new game allows players to investigate the sinister side of Las Vegas, and adds excitement by incorporating an optional level of interactivity whereby characters in the game place phone calls to players to help them with their sleuthing.

“We are very excited to be launching CSI: Crime Scene Investigation with all of its innovative features,” said Gonzague de Vallois, Senior Vice President, Gameloft. “Our mission has always been to push the envelope on game development and we are confident we have succeeded with this game.”

"This CBS Mobile game is the first of its kind utilizing outbound calling, which literally calls players to action,” said Cyriac Roeding, Executive Vice President, CBS Mobile. “Your cellphone rings, and a detective calls you to the scene — just like a real CSI detective. This combination of game play with popular content and a whole new level of interactivity represent enormous entertainment and business potential for the mobile world."

When signing up, players have the option of activating the interactive phone call feature; if activated, they receive a specialized call during the game for clues and tips that lead them to new crime scenes. The mobile game also delivers more realism than ever before with detailed locations, spontaneous interrogations, 3-D views of evidence, and clever laboratory mini-games to help solve crimes. The game plot was a collaboration with CBS Mobile and CSI Series Creator, Anthony E. Zuiker to ensure the storytelling represented the sanctity of the show.

CSI: Crime Scene Investigation — The Mobile Game is available on most U.S. carriers. A version of the CSI game will be available internationally though it will have slightly different features. To check the game’s availability with your carrier, text “SUSPECT” to 82174 on your mobile phone.

NEVES WINS CHILDREN'S EXCELLENCE AWARD AND ANNOUNCES PRICE DROP TO $19.99 - Play Flash Demo

NEVES WINS CHILDREN'S EXCELLENCE AWARD AND ANNOUNCES PRICE DROP

New Price Point to Drive Accessibility for Award-Winning Title

YUKE'S Company of America, subsidiary of Japanese game publisher YUKE'S Company Limited, announced today that NEVES, published by Atlus for the Nintendo DS, has received the highly coveted "Editor's Choice Award" from the editors at Children's Technology Review, a leading professional source of unbiased reviews of interactive technology for children. Additionally, YUKE'S announced that the unique puzzle game will receive a reduction in price to $19.99, effective immediately. NEVES is currently available at select retailers nationwide, including Amazon.com and GameStop.com.

"Receiving this award signifies NEVES' universal playability and educational convention for all ages," said Shane Takahashi, CEO of YUKE's Company of America. "NEVES' new price point will help to reinforce that our intellectually stimulating title reaches a broader audience of casual and hardcore gamers alike."

Developed and published by YUKE'S and distributed by Atlus U.S.A., Inc., NEVES is a unique tangram puzzle game that challenges players to think critically as they align seven wooden block pieces and build figures that correspond to a silhouette, which range from a simple item like a sword or key to more complicated images such as birds or airplanes.

Utilizing the touch screen feature of Nintendo DSTM, NEVES offers a challenging but relaxing puzzle experience to a broad audience of gamers. With over 500 different puzzles to choose from and four different modes including puzzle mode, count mode, time mode, and versus mode, players will have countless hours of fun solving puzzles of varying difficulty.

To play the Adobe Flash demo of NEVES, please visit: www.yukes.us/neves/html/about.html?label=demo_start

OBSCURE: THE AFTERMATH GOES GOLD ON Nintendo Wii Sony PLAYSTATION 2 SYSTEM AND PC

LET THE NIGHTMARE BEGIN! OBSCURE: THE AFTERMATH GOES GOLD ON WiiTM, PLAYSTATION 2 SYSTEM AND PC

Ignition Entertainment's Highly Anticipated Survival Horror Title Will Ship to North American Retailers on March 25th, 2008

Ignition Entertainment Ltd., a worldwide publisher and developer of videogames, and co-publisher Playlogic today announced that Obscure: The Aftermath has reached Gold Master status! It is scheduled for release on March 25, 2008, for Wii home video game system from Nintendo ($29.99), PlayStation 2 computer entertainment system ($19.99) and PC ($14.99).

“Survival horror gamers have been anxiously waiting for this game, and we’re pleased to announce that it is ready to go,” said Ajay Chadha, president of Ignition Entertainment USA. “We are all excited about this release. Retailers are anticipating its arrival and gamers are ready to get playing. We have had phenomenal feedback with our live action trailers from hardcore gamers, industry professionals, and the public at large. It has been a pleasure working on this title and exercising our diverse marketing techniques.”

The story of Obscure: The Aftermath follows the survivors from Leafmore High, now enrolled at Fallcreek University, where the unsuspecting student body has a new addiction – strange black flowers that have suddenly sprung up all over campus. As the students begin experimenting with the substance they realize there is more to these flowers, turning their bad trips into a horrible reality. Obscure: The Aftermath is heavily inspired by teen horror movies with an onslaught of creepy gruesome imagery. This title includes mind-bending puzzles, an all-new 2-player co-op gameplay mode, and an awesome hair-raising soundtrack

To learn more about Obscure: The Aftermath visit the official website at www.obscureaftermath.com.

Obscure: The Aftermathis rated ‘M’ for Mature by the ESRB.

Diary Girl Nintendo DS game launched in US

Team 3 Games are proud to announce the release of 'Diary Girl' in North America. Diary Girl is an original IP created by Team 3 Games and published by Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.

Konami Digital announced that Diary Girl has shipped to retail stores in North America. Developed for Nintendo DS system, this title provides girls of all ages the ability to interact with friends through their own customizable avatars, as well as organize a calendar and address book in their own password-protected electronic journal.

"The Diary Girl package gives young gamers an organizational tool, mini-games, and a social interactive component, all on their personal DS handheld system," said Rozita Tolouey, Director of Marketing for Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. "Kids increasingly crave games with a social networking aspect and Konami is dedicated to giving them that and more with this new title."

Diary Girl packs friends, fun and organization in a password-protected electronic journal for Nintendo DS. Featuring a daily calendar and an address book, Diary Girl is a lifestyle accessory for the busiest girl around. Players are given their own avatar to customize with various clothes and accessories, as well as make-up and hair. For the girl on-the-go, advanced DS capabilities allow young gamers to talk to their friends in real time without a cell phone using the WiFi voice chat function of the game, and instant message with the Picto-chat style text messaging service. To complete the Diary Girl package, players can also participate in mini-games including mazes, jig saw puzzles, card matching, and personality quizzes. No girl's DS collection can be complete without Diary Girl.

Diary Girl is rated "E" for Everyone by the ESRB and is available for an SRP of $29.99. For more information, please visitwww.konami.com.

PC PlayStation3 Microsoft X360 Capcom Bionic Commando - The Park location details.

The Park

In contrast to the gray, stark shapes of the downtown area, the FSA Memorial Park brought nature and greenery to the urban jungle. An expanse dedicated to recreation and natural beauty, the park’s hills and forests spread for miles, home to entertainment areas such as amusement parks, the city zoo, and the great glass structure of the National Greenhouse.

In the Avenue of Heroes, colossal statues reached to the sky as tributes to those who had served the glory of the FSA. Built after the conflict with the Imperials, the Avenue housed statues of such luminaries as Joseph Gibson and Nathan Spencer. The Avenue was considered one of the premier tourist spots in Ascension City – until the terrorist attack which turned the city into a desolate graveyard.

The park landscape took on an alien appearance in the wake of the bombing. Mighty cracks tore the hills apart and mashed huge areas together, creating hundreds of green isles of vegetation. Yet there is still a certain beauty to the desolate park, the unscathed trees and grass testament to the fact that even though the explosion eradicated hundreds of thousands of lives, some things still cling to life. BioReign have set up outposts throughout the park, though what their goal is in this strategically unimportant location is unclear.



DRAYTON AA-9 "HIKER"

Caliber: 12.7mm / 15.5mm
Weight: 17.5 kg empty
Fire Mode: 9-Round Burst
Magazine Capacity: 6 x 9-Round Cartridges
Effective Range: 50 meters
Manufacturer: Drayton Arms Company

The AA-9 HIKER (High-Impulse Kinetic Energy Round Weapon) is a shoulder-fired, burst-mode anti-armor weapon with unique design characteristics.

A single trigger-pull releases a rapid-fire burst of eight 12.7mm copper-core Penetrator slugs followed by a single 15.5mm round.

A single oversized cartridge houses all nine rounds in individual rifled chambers. The cartridge corkscrews backwards through the mechanism as each round fires in rapid sequence, with a friction-damping system absorbing most of the heavy recoil. The empty cartridge is ejected from the rear of the weapon over the user’s shoulder.

When aimed from the shoulder from a tightly-braced stance, all nine shots will typically group with a reasonable degree of accuracy and precision. The initial eight slugs successively penetrate even the toughest vehicle armor to cause massive internal secondary fragmentation, followed by the high-explosive round to deliver the final coup de grace.

Bejeweled 2 for Palm OS and Windows Mobile - major update!

Bejeweled 2 for Palm OS and Windows Mobile gets a major update!

Astraware and PopCap Games are very excited to announce a major update to PopCap's best-selling, flagship game, Bejeweled 2.

In version 1.30, Bejeweled 2 adds much-requested support for 240x240 square screen Windows Mobile devices such as Palm TreoTM smartphones and includes support for 320x320 Windows Mobile Professional and Classic devices such as Samsung's SGH-i780 smartphone.


This update also sees the very first release on Windows Mobile Standard devices. Bejeweled 2, version 1.30, supports 240x320 and 320x240 resolution non-touchscreen devices including the HTC S710, HTC StrTrk, Samsung Blackjack & Blackjack II, and Motorola Q and Q9.

The game has been brought fully up-to-date on Astraware's current games framework and controls have been optimized for play with either 5-way or stylus. Bejeweled 2 is recognised by both public and media as the must-have puzzle game for your Palm OS or Windows Mobile device, and this update supports an even wider range of devices than ever before!

Bejeweled 2, version 1.30, is a completely FREE update for registered users. Players who haven't yet experienced this award-winning classic can purchase a copy, priced $19.95, from the Astraware website: http://www.astraware.com/bejeweled2

Flyboys Squadron PC video game available now from Matrix Games

Flyboys Squadron Now Available from Matrix Games

Fly the legend... Flyboys Squadron thunders off the runway and onto hard drives everywhere!

Matrix Games and Interactive Magic are pleased to announce that Flyboys Squadron is now available for purchase from Matrix Games in a new special combined bundle that also includes Warbirds as a bonus game. Now gamers can experience the intensity of WWI aerial combat with a blend of historical accuracy and fantastic action, including both single player and online subscription-based play.

As an added bonus, Flyboys Squadron comes with a free one month of online play for both Flyboys Squadron and Warbirds, a World War II air combat simulator with over 100 aircraft and ground vehicles!

David Heath, Director of Operations at Matrix Games, said “Whether its manning the gunner’s seat and fending off another wave of enemy aircraft or piloting a legendary Nieuport 17 yourself, Flyboys Squadron brings good fun and plenty of action in a conflict that isn’t covered nearly enough. We’re pleased to offer this new bundle with two classic Interactive Magic air combat titles, which offer both World War I and World War II air combat in a package geared for online play.”

Join the brave knights of the skies in this World War I flight combat simulation, developed by Interactive Magic. Fast, fun and furious action takes you to the skies above no man’s land in the first air war in history, where you’ll exchange machine gun fire with enemy pilots in desperate turning dogfights. Based on the motion picture “Flyboys”, a twelve mission campaign will take you through the immersive single player storyline and prepare you for the next step – online play.

Forge a mighty tradition of strength and courage for your air squadron by besting opponents in over 10 authentic World War I aircraft and prove you’re the best in the world by surviving the infamous close range dogfights over Western Europe. In the rugged French Nieuport 17 biplane players must protect the homeland as either the pilot or rear gunner and use teamwork and sheer courage over 12 single player battles and several hidden missions.

Flyboys Squadron is part of the Warbirds community of massively multiplayer online flight simulations and comes with a month of free subscription time, after which further online play requires a paid subscription. Once you connect to the online community, you’ll find a virtual world with dynamic online missions and events. Ranks, points and medals will track your performance against human and AI pilots as you rise from rookie aviator to the “Ace” and Squadron Commander.

EA REVEALS FIRST DETAILS OF SIMS 3 FLAGSHIP PC GAME

EA REVEALS FIRST DETAILS OF NEXT-GENERATION FLAGSHIP PC GAME, 

COMING IN 2009

The Sims 3 Gives You Complete Freedom, Inspiring You With Endless Creative Possibilities

Electronic Arts announced today the first details on one of interactive entertainment’s most anticipated games, The Sims 3. Featuring a brand new engine that has been in development for nearly three years, The Sims 3 allows you to immerse your unique Sims in an open living neighbourhood right outside their door. The initial feature-set unveiled includes the new seamless, open neighbourhood, new Create-A-Sim, new realistic personalities and new unlimited customization. The Sims 3 will launch globally in 2009.

The Sims franchise has long been recognized for its appeal to a universal audience, both male and female, and at any age. Its broad appeal and loyal The Sims community has vaulted the franchise to an impressive 98 million games sold around the world and translated into 22 different languages. Celebrated for its creativity, humour, and community, The Sims franchise has become a global and cultural phenomenon since its inception in 2000.

Now, The Sims 3 is being designed to be the next-generation flagship game from The Sims Label.

“In The Sims 3, Sims can go beyond the boundaries of their home lot, and immerse themselves in an open, living neighbourhood, interacting with other Sims using our new deeper personality system,” said Rod Humble, Head of The Sims Studio. “It is this type of open-ended gameplay that inspires endless creative possibilities. In addition the new goals and rewards systems will give players of all kinds from core gamers to storytellers the ability to enjoy long-term game play.”

New Seamless, Open Neighbourhood—Explore the Neighbourhood Freely.
See the sights with your Sims! The new seamless neighbourhood architecture allows your Sims to roam freely around the neighbourhood and visit their loved one and friends—or foes. Discovering other Sims homes and families, traveling around to new locations like City Hall or the local park will create a whole new way of life for your Sims. Storytelling options will multiply as your Sims stroll downtown to meet new acquaintances, head across town for lunch, spy on their neighbours and bump into the boss when they least expect it.



New Create A Sim—Create Any Sim You Can Imagine.
In addition to the open, living neighbourhood, the all-new Create-a-Sim interface will feature easy-to-use design tools that allow you to make truly detailed Sims that are more realistic than ever. Create-a-Sim gives you the incredible freedom to customize just about any Sim you can imagine. From thin to full-figured to muscular—everything in between and even the extreme! In addition to determining your Sims body shape and size, you will also be able to fine-tune every feature on their faces, customize their hair style and select their skin tone, all from a vast selection of options. With so many choices to choose from, it is fun to create more realistic characters that look like you, someone you want to look like, or even a famous personality.

New Realistic Personalities—Every Sim Is A Unique Person, With A Distinct Personality
With the innovative and proprietary Realistic Personality System in The Sims 3, you can attribute each character with five distinct personality traits, helping shape your Sims behaviour and how they interact with others and their surroundings. This new system will empower you to create extremely complex and diverse in-game personalities. Will you create the nosy, inappropriate, kleptomaniac grandmother who loves to meddle in other people’s business? Or the commitment-phobic, hot-headed punk rocker whose rude nature and childish disposition keeps him from scoring a date? In The Sims 3, Sims will go beyond the basic set of day-to-day needs to be distinct individuals with multifaceted personalities, who can focus both on short-term opportunities and long-term goals. With a wide selection of personality traits to mix and match, more than 700 million combinations of Sims await. You never know who’ll meet in The Sims 3!



New Unlimited Customization—Everyone Can Customize Everything!
New and accessible creativity tools in The Sims 3 make it simple for anyone to customize anything, anywhere! From floors to flowers, fashions to sofas, wallpaper to window shades and more, The Sims 3 gives you all the flexibility and options you need to be the architect of your dream house or explore your interior design skills to outfit your ultimate home. Your Sims can make home an ultra-deluxe mansion, a cool bachelor pad, family’s dream home or charming cottage. The choice is yours in The Sims 3.

”The new engine and technologies in The Sims 3 are designed to unleash the player’s imagination with realistic looking Sims who have distinct personalities and a seamless living neighborhood for them to discover,” added Ben Bell, Executive Producer on The Sims 3. “Players are going to be thrilled by the level of realism in The Sims 3!”

For more information visit www.TheSims3.com.

METAL GEAR SOLID MOBILE CELLPHONE GAME NOW AVAILABLE EXCLUSIVELY TO VERIZON WIRELESS CUSTOMERS

METAL GEAR SOLID MOBILE NOW AVAILABLE EXCLUSIVELY TO VERIZON WIRELESS CUSTOMERS

Popular Video Game Franchise Hits Verizon Wireless Phones With 3D Graphics and Original Game Play

Verizon Wireless, the leading wireless company with the nation's most reliable wireless voice and data network, and Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc., a leading developer, publisher and manufacturer of electronic entertainment properties, today announced Metal Gear Solid Mobile is available for purchase exclusively through Verizon Wireless.

Metal Gear Solid Mobile is an award-winning game, having recently received the Grand Prix and Operator's Choice awards at the 2008 International Mobile Gaming Awards. Metal Gear Solid Mobile features never-before-seen dramatic 3D art displays and camera work that greatly surpass the current standard of mobile games and allows players to shift the viewpoint from first to third person and to control a variety of weapons. The game also takes advantage of the camera functionality - for example, Verizon Wireless customers can use their camera phones to capture images and the game will incorporate the image colors into the players' camouflage system.

Designed by the same team behind the Metal Gear Solid console games, Kojima Productions, and developed in conjunction with Ideaworks3D and utilizing its Airplay™ 3.5 SDK, Metal Gear Solid Mobile is an original game designed specifically for the mobile platform. Players face the same extreme tension of solitary infiltration that fans of the classic tactical espionage action game have come to expect from the Metal Gear Solid series, previously released to the PlayStation® and PlayStation®2.

Verizon Wireless customers can purchase Metal Gear Solid Mobile in the Get Fun & Games shopping aisle in the Get It Now® virtual store. The game is available for $4.99 monthly access or $10.99 for unlimited use purchase. Verizon Wireless customers can get Metal Gear Solid Mobile on more than 20 popular Get It Now-capable phones, including the Voyager™ by LG and the LG VX8700. Download charges for Get It Now applications vary and airtime or megabyte charges may apply when browsing, downloading and using certain applications. Customers need a Get It Now-enabled handset and Verizon Wireless digital service to access the Get It Now virtual store.

For more information on Verizon Wireless products and services, customers can visit a Verizon Wireless Communications Store, call 1-800-2 JOIN IN or visit www.verizonwireless.com. For more information about Metal Gear Solid Mobile, please visit www.konamimobile.com.

Big Bang viodeo game explodes onto Nintendo DS

SouthPeak Explode a Big Bang Onto Nintendo DS

Big Bang Mini Announced; Fireworks-Themed Shooter To Bring Explosive Action to Handheld

SouthPeak Games today announced another title for its 2008 Nintendo DS line-up, in the form of fireworks-based shooter Big Bang Mini. Based around filling the night sky with brilliant bursts of fireworks to take out encroaching enemies, Big Bang Mini will be released for Nintendo’s handheld this autumn.

Big Bang Mini’s main objective is to use the stylus to create fireworks in order to deal with waves of enemies that loom overhead. Miss and you’ll be forced to tackle another challenge - avoiding falling sparks created by your missed explosions. The end of each level comes with a unique opportunity for would-be fireworks designers to make the ‘Final Bouquet’ – a one-of-a-kind masterpiece that will proclaim your victory. With over 90 levels to complete, Big Bang Mini offers players huge scope for its special brand of fireworks fun.

“We usually only get to see fireworks displays happening high above us, but with Big Bang Mini you get to make them yourself,” said Melanie Mroz, CEO of SouthPeak Interactive. “You’ll also be creating them with each stroke of the stylus and watching your dazzling display unfold across the screen. It’s an amazing experience that is sure to give an adrenaline rush every time players set off a huge display.”

“I have yet to find anyone who doesn’t love fireworks,” said Camille Guermonprez, Managing Director of Arkedo Studio. “With Big Bang Mini, we’re trying to combine the thrill of an intense action shooter with the beauty of a grand fireworks display. If there’s anything players won’t like about the game, it will be that they’re too involved in striking and dodging to appreciate the light show they’re creating.”

Big Bang Mini will be released for Nintendo DS in Autumn 2008.